Michel's Patisserie
Michel's Patisserie was an Australian bakery-café franchise chain known for cakes, pastries, pies, savoury foods and coffee.
Last updated October 28, 2026
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Overview
Michel's Patisserie was an Australian bakery-style food outlet chain operating through a franchise model. Its stores sold cakes, pastries, pies, savoury baked foods and coffee, combining the functions of a neighbourhood bakery, café and takeaway outlet. The chain was developed around a central-production model: a bakery prepared products for distribution to stores, while franchise outlets displayed and sold the goods to customers. This approach was intended to provide consistency across a geographically dispersed network while reducing the need for each store to conduct extensive on-site baking. The brand's history has two related starting points. The original Michel's Patisserie was established in Sydney in 1980 by French chef Michel Cattoen and his wife, Elisabeth. The franchise business associated with the national chain was founded in 1988 by Noel Carroll and Noel Roberts after approximately two years of research into product distribution, store design, marketing, training and franchise operations. The concept was tested in stores at Castlecrag and Newport before being formally launched as a franchise in 1990. Michel's Patisserie expanded into a national network and became one of Australia's largest pastry chains. At its peak, the system had more than 90 outlets across every Australian state and territory except Tasmania. It employed approximately 4,000 people and was reported to serve about 36 million cups of coffee and 9.5 million slices of cake annually. The brand's offer centred on familiar, accessible bakery products rather than specialist fine dining, with cakes and coffee forming important parts of its customer proposition. A Michel's Patisserie store in Toronto was named the National Retail Association's Supreme Retailer of the Year in 2016. The business underwent structural consolidation in February 2006, when it completed a management buyout and merged with its master franchisees in Queensland and Victoria to form a single national franchise business. It later became part of Retail Food Group, the Australian franchising company that also managed brands including Gloria Jean's Coffees, Brumby's Bakery and Donut King. The chain faced operational and franchise-system challenges in the 2010s. In 2015 and 2016, it moved franchisees from fresh cakes to frozen cakes supplied through the network. The change was associated with criticism and a reported decline in perceived product quality. In 2022, a civil case involving Retail Food Group resulted in a settlement under which Michel's Patisserie and Gloria Jean's franchisees received repayments and debt reductions totalling $10 million in relation to alleged improper marketing charges and the sale of shops alleged to be loss-making. In February 2025, Retail Food Group announced that the remaining 19 Michel's Patisserie stores would either close or be converted into Gloria Jean's Coffees or Donut King outlets. This decision ended the brand's approximately 45-year operating history and brought the Australian retail chain to an effective close.
History
Michel's Patisserie has roots in a Sydney patisserie founded in 1980 by French chef Michel Cattoen and his wife, Elisabeth. The national franchise concept is generally dated to 1988, when Noel Carroll and Noel Roberts developed a structured bakery-retail system after roughly two years of work on the concept's products, distribution arrangements, store layouts, marketing and training. The format was tested under full market conditions at stores in Castlecrag and Newport before being introduced as a franchise in 1990. The operating model relied on centralised production. A central bakery prepared cakes and other bakery products and distributed them to retail outlets daily. Stores functioned primarily as customer-facing points of sale, displaying the products and serving bakery foods and coffee. Central production enabled the chain to maintain a common product range across multiple locations and made the concept suitable for franchising. The retail offer combined cakes, pastries, pies, savoury products and coffee, positioning the chain between a conventional bakery and a casual café. Michel's Patisserie expanded across Australia and became a large national pastry franchise. At its high point, the network had more than 90 stores in every Australian state and territory except Tasmania. The business was reported to employ approximately 4,000 people and to serve around 36 million cups of coffee and 9.5 million slices of cake each year. The chain was also recognised at store level: Michel's Patisserie Toronto received the National Retail Association Supreme Retailer of the Year award in 2016. A significant corporate restructuring occurred in February 2006. Michel's Patisserie undertook a management buyout and merged with its master franchisees in Queensland and Victoria, creating a unified national franchise business. The brand subsequently operated within Retail Food Group, an Australian multi-brand franchising company. RFG's portfolio also included Gloria Jean's Coffees, Brumby's Bakery and Donut King, placing Michel's Patisserie within a broader network of food and beverage franchise systems. The chain's franchise model later attracted criticism. During 2015 and 2016, Michel's Patisserie changed its supply arrangement so that franchisees received frozen cakes rather than fresh cakes. The shift was reported to have contributed to a decline in product quality, highlighting the tension between centralised efficiency and the freshness expectations associated with a patisserie brand. The wider Retail Food Group franchise system also became subject to regulatory scrutiny. In December 2022, the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission succeeded in a civil case against RFG. The resulting settlement provided repayments and debt erasures totalling $10 million to franchisees of Michel's Patisserie and Gloria Jean's. The matter concerned allegations involving illegitimate marketing expenses and the sale of shops alleged to be loss-making. The settlement formed part of the brand's later history because it affected franchisees and the economic sustainability of the network, even though the proceedings concerned the parent company's conduct and franchise practices. By February 2025, RFG announced that only 19 Michel's Patisserie stores remained and that these locations would either close or be converted to Gloria Jean's Coffees or Donut King outlets. The announcement ended the brand's approximately 45 years of operation, counting from its 1980 Sydney origins, and marked the effective discontinuation of Michel's Patisserie as a standalone Australian retail chain.
- 2025
Remaining stores closed or converted
[1]Retail Food Group announced that the remaining 19 stores would close or become Gloria Jean's Coffees or Donut King outlets.
- 2022
Franchise settlement follows ACCC civil case
[1]A settlement following an ACCC civil case against Retail Food Group provided repayments and debt reductions to Michel's Patisserie and Gloria Jean's franchisees.
- 2016
Toronto store wins national retail award
[1]Michel's Patisserie Toronto was named the National Retail Association Supreme Retailer of the Year.
- 2015
Frozen cake supply introduced
[1]The chain began transitioning franchisees from fresh cakes to frozen cakes supplied through the central network.
- 2006
Management buyout and national merger
[1]A management buyout was combined with a merger involving the Queensland and Victoria master franchisees to form a single national franchise business.
- 1990
Franchise launch
[1]Following testing in Castlecrag and Newport, the Michel's Patisserie concept was launched as a franchise.
- 1988
National franchise business founded
[1]Noel Carroll and Noel Roberts founded the franchise business that developed into the national Michel's Patisserie chain.
- 1980
Original Sydney patisserie established
[1]Michel Cattoen and Elisabeth established the original Michel's Patisserie in Sydney.
Products and positioning
An accessible Australian bakery-café franchise offering everyday cakes, pastries, pies, savoury foods and coffee through shopping-centre and neighbourhood retail outlets.
Bakery
Cakes and cake slices
Cakes were a central part of Michel's Patisserie's retail offer, sold both as whole cakes and individual slices. The products were prepared through the brand's central bakery supply model and distributed to franchise outlets. During 2015 and 2016, the chain shifted franchisees from fresh cake supply to frozen cakes, a change that was associated with reported concerns about product quality.
Bakery
Pastries
Pastries formed part of the chain's bakery-style range and supported its positioning as a convenient patisserie and café destination. Products were supplied through the central bakery and sold at franchised retail outlets rather than being made entirely on site at each location.
Savoury bakery
Pies and savoury foods
Pies and other savoury baked foods broadened Michel's Patisserie beyond sweet products. They helped the stores serve customers seeking an informal meal or takeaway item alongside the brand's cakes and coffee.
Beverage
Coffee
Coffee was a major part of the chain's bakery-café proposition. At its peak, the network was reported to serve approximately 36 million cups annually, making beverages an important complement to the cake, pastry and savoury-food range.
Controversies
2022
Retail Food Group franchise conduct settlement
Following a civil case brought by the Australian Competition & Consumer Commission against Retail Food Group, franchisees associated with Michel's Patisserie and Gloria Jean's received repayments and debt erasures totalling $10 million. The settlement related to allegations concerning improper marketing expenses and the sale of shops alleged to be loss-making.
2020
ACCC sued Retail Food Group and related entities over franchisee allegations
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission sued Retail Food Group and related entities, alleging unconscionable conduct, false or misleading representations to incoming franchisees, and improper use of franchise marketing funds. Gloria Jean's, Michel's Patisserie and Donut King are among the brands associated with entities named in the proceedings; the allegations are not established as findings in the supplied report.
Brand decisions
2025
Closure or conversion of remaining storesStrategyBackground
Retail Food Group reported that only 19 Michel's Patisserie stores remained in the network.
Action taken
RFG announced that the remaining locations would either close or be converted into Gloria Jean's Coffees or Donut King stores.
Aftermath
The decision ended Michel's Patisserie's operation as a standalone brand after approximately 45 years.
2015
Transition from fresh cakes to frozen cakesGeneration changeBackground
The franchise network used centralised production and distribution to supply its retail outlets.
Action taken
Michel's Patisserie changed the cake supply provided to franchisees from fresh cakes to frozen cakes.
Aftermath
The change was associated with a reported decline in product quality and became a source of criticism of the franchise system.
2006
Management buyout and merger into a national franchise businessM&ABackground
Michel's Patisserie had developed through a network involving master franchisees in different Australian states.
Action taken
The business completed a management buyout and merged with its Queensland and Victoria master franchisees to create a single national franchise business.
Aftermath
The restructuring consolidated the brand's franchise operations at a national level before its later operation under Retail Food Group.
Recent events
ACCC sued Retail Food Group and related entities over franchisee allegations[2]
Reported:
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission sued Retail Food Group and related entities, alleging unconscionable conduct, false or misleading representations to incoming franchisees, and improper use of franchise marketing funds. Gloria Jean's, Michel's Patisserie and Donut King are among the brands associated with entities named in the proceedings; the allegations are not established as findings in the supplied report.
Sources2 sources
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